Taylor W. O'Hearn
Encyclopedia
Taylor Walters O'Hearn (July 6, 1907–April 2, 1997) was a pioneer in the rebirth of the Republican Party
in Louisiana
during the mid-twentieth century. He and Morley A. Hudson
, both of Shreveport in Caddo Parish, were the first two Republicans
elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives
since Reconstruction. The pair served single terms from 1964-1968. O'Hearn and Hudson were joined in the Caddo delegation by Democrats
Algie D. Brown
, Frank Fulco
, and newcomer J. Bennett Johnston, Jr., later a member of both the Louisiana State Senate
and the United States Senate
.
O'Hearn was born in Shreveport to Ernest O'Hearn (1880–1972), a railroad worker, and Mattie W. O'Hearn (1886–1982). Ernest O'Hearn, who was probably born in New Orleans, had been orphaned as a child when both of his parents died of yellow fever
. In 1948, Taylor O'Hearn became a self-employed CPA
in Shreveport. In 1957, he passed the Louisiana bar exam, having studied at night at Centenary College
in Shreveport. He was a United States Navy
veteran with service during World War II
. He was a former commander of the American Legion
Post 14 in Shreveport.
Like most Louisiana Republicans of his era, Taylor O'Hearn started political life as a Democrat
. In 1959, he supported the segregationist gubernatorial candidate William M. Rainach
of Claiborne Parish in the Democratic primary. Rainach finished a weak third, and the governorship went to Jimmie Davis
, a former Shreveporter who had also served as governor from 1944-1948.
and Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson
, O'Hearn switched parties to run in 1962 for the U.S. Senate. He challenged incumbent
Democrat Russell B. Long
, who as the oldest son of the legendary Huey Pierce Long, Jr.
, was already himself a near political icon in Louisiana.
O'Hearn charged that Long was practicing "the same old pork barrel. He's promising everybody everything with their own money." O'Hearn further claimed that Long was attempting to take credit for all political progress in the state. Long refused to debate O'Hearn, who charged that the senator "doesn't have the guts to talk to the people about campaign issues." Long replied that he was "not ashamed I've fought to get things for Louisiana. I'm not ashamed to go to the White House to talk to the president to get things done for my state and its people."
Critical of the Kennedy Cuba
n policies, O'Hearn called the failed Bay of Pigs
operation a "desertion of Cuban patriots . . . It's odd to me that Russell Long and Jack Kennedy were the only two persons in the country who did not know about the Cuban arms buildup." He claimed that the Cuban blockade was "timed perfectly with the political campaign."
O'Hearn also claimed that Long voted 75 percent of the time for Kennedy policies: "These bills are not just socialistic
but radical!" Long denied O'Hearn's contention that he was automatically in lockstep with Kennedy policies. Long voiced opposition for instance, to Kennedy's intervention in the desegregation
of the University of Mississippi
at Oxford
that fall, which had led to a violent confrontation.
O'Hearn said that he opposed foreign aid until neutral countries committed themselves to the West. He proposed that the United States withdraw from the United Nations
until "the communist bloc pays its share." In appealing for support, O'Hearn said that his "honor and integrity [are] the only things I own. No one is going to buy it, bargain for it, or obtain it in any other matter."
In a newspaper advertisement, Long declared himself an "Independent Thinker" who is "unalterably opposed to federal control of state education, foreign aid to Russia's satellites, unnecessary federal spending, and increased taxation." He also claimed to be a "leader in the fight to preserve our traditional southern way of life." Long noted that he had kept open Fort Polk
near Leesville
in Vernon Parish
and had fought for assistance to underprivileged children, the needy blind, small business, and farmers.
Long first easily turned aside a challenge from the "right" in his own party in the summer of 1962 against the retired lieutenant colonel
Philemon "Phil" St. Amant of Baton Rouge. He then defeated O'Hearn, 318,838 votes (75.6 percent) to 103,066 (24.4 percent). O'Hearn carried seven north Louisiana parishes, where conservatism was running strongly at the time. He polled a clear majority in the 4th congressional district. He fared best in his own Caddo Parish, where he polled 64.7 percent. He also received 58.7 percent in Madison Parish (Tallulah
) in northeast Louisiana. O'Hearn carried Webster (Minden)
, Morehouse (Bastrop
), Bossier (Bossier City and Benton
), Claiborne (Homer), and La Salle (Jena
) parishes. Madison and Claiborne parishes, however, became staunchly Democratic after the implementation of the Voting Rights Act
of 1965 added large numbers of African American
s to their voter rolls. In ten other parishes, all in north Louisiana, O'Hearn drew more than 40 percent of the vote.
waged an active Republican Party
gubernatorial campaign. Hudson in jest declared himself "minority leader" of the Louisiana House in that he led the vote totals in Caddo Parish. O'Hearn joked that he must be the "minority whip" in that he had the second-highest Republican tally. In the 1964 session of the Louisiana House, their page was a 17-year-old high school
student named Louis E. "Woody" Jenkins of Baton Rouge. In 1972, Jenkins won election as one of the youngest legislators in state history, and in 1996, he was the narrow loser as the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate.
O'Hearn's priority as a legislator was to promote the construction of a north-south interstate highway link in Louisiana, later the popular I-49. Billy J. Guin of Shreveport, one of the Republican candidates who was defeated in Caddo Parish at the time that O'Hearn was elected to the legislature, recalled that it was O'Hearn who first proposed the highway. Later, state Senator Johnston proposed road tolls
to move the project forward.
In 1966, O'Hearn lost an attempt to win a newly-created judgeship in Caddo Parish. He was defeated, 64-36 percent, in the general election
by Democrat James A. "Dee" Alexander. After Republicans scored gains in Caddo Parish in 1964, the Democrats took successful steps to drive them from local office. The vehicle used was the Caddo Democratic Association, which supplied campaign funds for any local Democratic nominee facing GOP opposition in a general election. The association had total success in its mission for five years—from 1966 until 1971. Woody Jenkins said that he remembers O'Hearn and Hudson as men of high principles and solid role models for future generations of conservative legislators.
(1924–2000), would return to reverse their defeats and win House seats from single-member districts in 1972. Morley Hudson, who did not seek reelection in 1968, issued a statement on behalf of all the losing Republican candidates: "We did not lose; we taught thousands of our voters that they could vote for two-party government." In Baton Rouge, another Republican legislator, Edward Clark Gaudin
, also was defeated, but he too rebounded to victory in 1972.
O'Hearn charged that election laws had been violated at three black precincts in Shreveport—that Democrats passed out campaign literature at the door of one polling place and were less than the required 200 feet minimum from the two other precincts. O'Hearn said that he contacted Caddo Parish Sheriff
James M. Goslin, and the Shreveport public safety commissioner, George W. D'Artois, both Democrats. Each told him that the matter was out of his jurisdiction. O'Hearn never again sought public office.
Richard Deacon
(1921–1984), who starred as "Fred Rutherford" on Leave It to Beaver
and as "Mel Cooley" on the original The Dick Van Dyke Show
.
O'Hearn was a member of the First Baptist
Church of Shreveport. He was an avid fisherman
, musician
, and photographer.
O'Hearn died, aged 89, in Granbury, Texas
, southwest of Fort Worth. Survivors included his wife of fifty-two years, Gladys Bookout O'Hearn (June 20, 1910 — September 6, 2001); one son, Patrick T. O'Hearn (born 1930) of Palm Springs, California
; one daughter, Jerry O'Hearn Meier and husband Kenneth Fredrick Meier (both born 1932) of Granbury; nine grandchildren, ten great-grandchildren, and one great-great-grandchild. Gladys O'Hearn, a Shreveport native and a graduate of Northwestern State University
(then College) in Natchitoches
, was the executive secretary for many years of the Arkansas-Louisiana Citgo
Company. Mrs. O'Hearn was also preceded in death by Paul A. Kennon, her son from a previous marriage.
Taylor and Gladys O'Hearn are interred at Forest Park Cemetery on St. Vincent Avenue in Shreveport. O'Hearn's parents are also buried in Forest Park but not in the same section of the cemetery.
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
in Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
during the mid-twentieth century. He and Morley A. Hudson
Morley A. Hudson
Morley Alvin Hudson , was a Shreveport businessman, engineer, civic leader, and a pioneer of the modern Republican Party in Louisiana.Hudson was born in San Antonio, Texas, the son of Oscar Hudson and the former Ruth Morley...
, both of Shreveport in Caddo Parish, were the first two Republicans
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives
Louisiana House of Representatives
The Louisiana House of Representatives is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the US state of Louisiana. The House is composed of 105 Representatives, each of whom represents approximately 42,500 people . Members serve four-year terms with a term limit of...
since Reconstruction. The pair served single terms from 1964-1968. O'Hearn and Hudson were joined in the Caddo delegation by Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Algie D. Brown
Algie D. Brown
Algie Dee Brown was a Shreveport attorney and a Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1948-1972. He served under governors Earl Kemp Long, Robert F. Kennon, James Houston "Jimmie" Davis, and John J. McKeithen...
, Frank Fulco
Frank Fulco
Frank J. Fulco, Sr. , was a Democratic member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1956–1972 and a leader of the Italian-American community in his native Louisiana...
, and newcomer J. Bennett Johnston, Jr., later a member of both the Louisiana State Senate
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
and the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
.
O'Hearn was born in Shreveport to Ernest O'Hearn (1880–1972), a railroad worker, and Mattie W. O'Hearn (1886–1982). Ernest O'Hearn, who was probably born in New Orleans, had been orphaned as a child when both of his parents died of yellow fever
Yellow fever
Yellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease. The virus is a 40 to 50 nm enveloped RNA virus with positive sense of the Flaviviridae family....
. In 1948, Taylor O'Hearn became a self-employed CPA
Certified Public Accountant
Certified Public Accountant is the statutory title of qualified accountants in the United States who have passed the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination and have met additional state education and experience requirements for certification as a CPA...
in Shreveport. In 1957, he passed the Louisiana bar exam, having studied at night at Centenary College
Centenary College of Louisiana
Centenary College of Louisiana is a primarily undergraduate, liberal arts and sciences college in Shreveport, Louisiana. The college is one of the founding members of the Associated Colleges of the South, a pedagogical organization consisting of sixteen Southern liberal arts colleges...
in Shreveport. He was a United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
veteran with service during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He was a former commander of the American Legion
American Legion
The American Legion is a mutual-aid organization of veterans of the United States armed forces chartered by the United States Congress. It was founded to benefit those veterans who served during a wartime period as defined by Congress...
Post 14 in Shreveport.
Like most Louisiana Republicans of his era, Taylor O'Hearn started political life as a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
. In 1959, he supported the segregationist gubernatorial candidate William M. Rainach
William M. Rainach
William Monroe Rainach, Sr., known as Willie Rainach , was a state legislator from rural Summerfield in Claiborne Parish who led Louisiana's "Massive Resistance" to desegregation during the last half of the 1950s...
of Claiborne Parish in the Democratic primary. Rainach finished a weak third, and the governorship went to Jimmie Davis
Jimmie Davis
James Houston Davis , better known as Jimmie Davis, was a noted singer of both sacred and popular songs who served two nonconsecutive terms as the 47th Governor of Louisiana...
, a former Shreveporter who had also served as governor from 1944-1948.
Challenging Russell B. Long, 1962
Having grown disenchanted with the national Democratic administration of President John F. KennedyJohn F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
and Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
, O'Hearn switched parties to run in 1962 for the U.S. Senate. He challenged incumbent
Incumbent
The incumbent, in politics, is the existing holder of a political office. This term is usually used in reference to elections, in which races can often be defined as being between an incumbent and non-incumbent. For example, in the 2004 United States presidential election, George W...
Democrat Russell B. Long
Russell B. Long
Russell Billiu Long was an American Democratic politician and United States Senator from Louisiana from 1948 until 1987.-Early life:...
, who as the oldest son of the legendary Huey Pierce Long, Jr.
Huey Long
Huey Pierce Long, Jr. , nicknamed The Kingfish, served as the 40th Governor of Louisiana from 1928–1932 and as a U.S. Senator from 1932 to 1935. A Democrat, he was noted for his radical populist policies. Though a backer of Franklin D...
, was already himself a near political icon in Louisiana.
O'Hearn charged that Long was practicing "the same old pork barrel. He's promising everybody everything with their own money." O'Hearn further claimed that Long was attempting to take credit for all political progress in the state. Long refused to debate O'Hearn, who charged that the senator "doesn't have the guts to talk to the people about campaign issues." Long replied that he was "not ashamed I've fought to get things for Louisiana. I'm not ashamed to go to the White House to talk to the president to get things done for my state and its people."
Critical of the Kennedy Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
n policies, O'Hearn called the failed Bay of Pigs
Bay of Pigs Invasion
The Bay of Pigs Invasion was an unsuccessful action by a CIA-trained force of Cuban exiles to invade southern Cuba, with support and encouragement from the US government, in an attempt to overthrow the Cuban government of Fidel Castro. The invasion was launched in April 1961, less than three months...
operation a "desertion of Cuban patriots . . . It's odd to me that Russell Long and Jack Kennedy were the only two persons in the country who did not know about the Cuban arms buildup." He claimed that the Cuban blockade was "timed perfectly with the political campaign."
O'Hearn also claimed that Long voted 75 percent of the time for Kennedy policies: "These bills are not just socialistic
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
but radical!" Long denied O'Hearn's contention that he was automatically in lockstep with Kennedy policies. Long voiced opposition for instance, to Kennedy's intervention in the desegregation
Desegregation
Desegregation is the process of ending the separation of two groups usually referring to races. This is most commonly used in reference to the United States. Desegregation was long a focus of the American Civil Rights Movement, both before and after the United States Supreme Court's decision in...
of the University of Mississippi
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the...
at Oxford
Oxford, Mississippi
Oxford is a city in, and the county seat of, Lafayette County, Mississippi, United States. Founded in 1835, it was named after the British university city of Oxford in hopes of having the state university located there, which it did successfully attract....
that fall, which had led to a violent confrontation.
O'Hearn said that he opposed foreign aid until neutral countries committed themselves to the West. He proposed that the United States withdraw from the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
until "the communist bloc pays its share." In appealing for support, O'Hearn said that his "honor and integrity [are] the only things I own. No one is going to buy it, bargain for it, or obtain it in any other matter."
In a newspaper advertisement, Long declared himself an "Independent Thinker" who is "unalterably opposed to federal control of state education, foreign aid to Russia's satellites, unnecessary federal spending, and increased taxation." He also claimed to be a "leader in the fight to preserve our traditional southern way of life." Long noted that he had kept open Fort Polk
Fort Polk
Fort Polk is a United States Army installation located in Vernon Parish, approximately 7 miles east of Leesville, Louisiana and 20 miles north of DeRidder, Louisiana....
near Leesville
Leesville, Louisiana
Leesville is a city in and the parish seat of Vernon Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 6,753 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Fort Polk South Micropolitan Statistical Area. The city is home to the Fort Polk U.S. Army installation...
in Vernon Parish
Vernon Parish, Louisiana
Vernon Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Leesville and as of 2000, the population was 52,531....
and had fought for assistance to underprivileged children, the needy blind, small business, and farmers.
Long first easily turned aside a challenge from the "right" in his own party in the summer of 1962 against the retired lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
Philemon "Phil" St. Amant of Baton Rouge. He then defeated O'Hearn, 318,838 votes (75.6 percent) to 103,066 (24.4 percent). O'Hearn carried seven north Louisiana parishes, where conservatism was running strongly at the time. He polled a clear majority in the 4th congressional district. He fared best in his own Caddo Parish, where he polled 64.7 percent. He also received 58.7 percent in Madison Parish (Tallulah
Tallulah
Tallulah is a Choctaw name . It means "leaping water".-Place names:Tallulah is the name of several places in the United States:*Tallulah, Louisiana, a small city*The Tallulah River in Georgia...
) in northeast Louisiana. O'Hearn carried Webster (Minden)
Minden, Louisiana
Minden is a city in the American state of Louisiana. It serves as the parish seat of Webster Parish and is located twenty-eight miles east of Shreveport, the seat of Caddo Parish. The population, which has been stable since 1960, was 13,027 at the 2000 census...
, Morehouse (Bastrop
Bastrop, Louisiana
Bastrop is a city in and the parish seat of Morehouse Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 12,988 at the 2000 census. It is the principal city of and is included in the Bastrop, Louisiana Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Monroe-Bastrop, Louisiana Combined...
), Bossier (Bossier City and Benton
Benton, Louisiana
The town of Benton is the parish seat of Bossier Parish, in the US state of Louisiana. The population was 2,035 at the 2000 census. The larger Bossier City is located south of Benton...
), Claiborne (Homer), and La Salle (Jena
Jena, Louisiana
Jena is a town in and the parish seat of La Salle Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 2,971 at the 2000 census.In September 2006, Jena became the focus of national news stories in the United States for a racial controversy involving its school system and a group of students known...
) parishes. Madison and Claiborne parishes, however, became staunchly Democratic after the implementation of the Voting Rights Act
Voting Rights Act
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is a landmark piece of national legislation in the United States that outlawed discriminatory voting practices that had been responsible for the widespread disenfranchisement of African Americans in the U.S....
of 1965 added large numbers of African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
s to their voter rolls. In ten other parishes, all in north Louisiana, O'Hearn drew more than 40 percent of the vote.
Election to the Louisiana legislature
In 1964, O'Hearn ran for one of five then at-large seats in the Louisiana House of Representatives from Caddo Parish. The seats were made single-member after the 1970 census. Morley A. Hudson and O'Hearn both won, finishing ahead of three Democrats, who won the other positions. Hudson and O'Hearn were the only Republicans anywhere in Louisiana to win legislative seats that year, when fellow Shreveporter Charlton LyonsCharlton Lyons
Charlton Havard Lyons, Sr., also known as Big Papa Lyons , was a Shreveport oilman who in 1964 waged the first determined Republican bid for the Louisiana governorship since Reconstruction. Lyons also made a strong but losing bid for the United States House of Representatives in a special election...
waged an active Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
gubernatorial campaign. Hudson in jest declared himself "minority leader" of the Louisiana House in that he led the vote totals in Caddo Parish. O'Hearn joked that he must be the "minority whip" in that he had the second-highest Republican tally. In the 1964 session of the Louisiana House, their page was a 17-year-old high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
student named Louis E. "Woody" Jenkins of Baton Rouge. In 1972, Jenkins won election as one of the youngest legislators in state history, and in 1996, he was the narrow loser as the Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate.
O'Hearn's priority as a legislator was to promote the construction of a north-south interstate highway link in Louisiana, later the popular I-49. Billy J. Guin of Shreveport, one of the Republican candidates who was defeated in Caddo Parish at the time that O'Hearn was elected to the legislature, recalled that it was O'Hearn who first proposed the highway. Later, state Senator Johnston proposed road tolls
Toll road
A toll road is a privately or publicly built road for which a driver pays a toll for use. Structures for which tolls are charged include toll bridges and toll tunnels. Non-toll roads are financed using other sources of revenue, most typically fuel tax or general tax funds...
to move the project forward.
In 1966, O'Hearn lost an attempt to win a newly-created judgeship in Caddo Parish. He was defeated, 64-36 percent, in the general election
General election
In a parliamentary political system, a general election is an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections.The term...
by Democrat James A. "Dee" Alexander. After Republicans scored gains in Caddo Parish in 1964, the Democrats took successful steps to drive them from local office. The vehicle used was the Caddo Democratic Association, which supplied campaign funds for any local Democratic nominee facing GOP opposition in a general election. The association had total success in its mission for five years—from 1966 until 1971. Woody Jenkins said that he remembers O'Hearn and Hudson as men of high principles and solid role models for future generations of conservative legislators.
Defeat in 1968
After his failure to win the judgeship, O'Hearn served the year and a half left in his legislative term. He ran unsuccessfully for reelection in 1968. O'Hearn polled 15,150 votes to lead the Republican ticket in the at-large state House races in Caddo Parish, but he was 5,475 votes below the lowest-ranking Democratic candidate. Two other unsuccessful Republican state House candidates from Caddo Parish in 1968, Benjamin Franklin O'Neal, Jr. (1922–2004) and Arthur W. "Art" Sour, Jr.Art Sour
Arthur William Sour, Jr., known as Art Sour , was a Shreveport businessman and a pioneer in developing a competitive Republican Party in Louisiana. A conservative, Sour served in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1972-1992. He was born in Shreveport to Arthur W. Sour and Adele Sour . He...
(1924–2000), would return to reverse their defeats and win House seats from single-member districts in 1972. Morley Hudson, who did not seek reelection in 1968, issued a statement on behalf of all the losing Republican candidates: "We did not lose; we taught thousands of our voters that they could vote for two-party government." In Baton Rouge, another Republican legislator, Edward Clark Gaudin
Clark Gaudin
Edward Clark Gaudin is a Baton Rouge attorney who served for twenty-one years in the Louisiana House of Representatives as the first Republican member from East Baton Rouge Parish in the 20th century....
, also was defeated, but he too rebounded to victory in 1972.
O'Hearn charged that election laws had been violated at three black precincts in Shreveport—that Democrats passed out campaign literature at the door of one polling place and were less than the required 200 feet minimum from the two other precincts. O'Hearn said that he contacted Caddo Parish Sheriff
Sheriff
A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
James M. Goslin, and the Shreveport public safety commissioner, George W. D'Artois, both Democrats. Each told him that the matter was out of his jurisdiction. O'Hearn never again sought public office.
O'Hearn's obituary
A balded, bespectacled man with black-rimmed eyeglasses and a stern facial expression, he bore a striking resemblance to the popular comic character actorActor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
Richard Deacon
Richard Deacon (actor)
Richard Deacon , born in Philadelphia, was an American television and motion picture actor.-Career:The bald and usually bespectacled character actor often portrayed pompous or imperious figures. He made appearances on The Jack Benny Show as a salesman and a barber, and on NBC's Happy as a hotel...
(1921–1984), who starred as "Fred Rutherford" on Leave It to Beaver
Leave It to Beaver
Leave It to Beaver is an American television situation comedy about an inquisitive but often naïve boy named Theodore "The Beaver" Cleaver and his adventures at home, in school, and around his suburban neighborhood...
and as "Mel Cooley" on the original The Dick Van Dyke Show
The Dick Van Dyke Show
The Dick Van Dyke Show is an American television sitcom that initially aired on the Columbia Broadcasting System from October 3, 1961, until June 1, 1966. The show was created by Carl Reiner and starred Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore. It was produced by Reiner with Bill Persky and Sam Denoff....
.
O'Hearn was a member of the First Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
Church of Shreveport. He was an avid fisherman
Fisherman
A fisherman or fisher is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishermen and fish farmers. The term can also be applied to recreational fishermen and may be used to describe both men...
, musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
, and photographer.
O'Hearn died, aged 89, in Granbury, Texas
Granbury, Texas
Granbury is a city in Hood County, Texas, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 5,718. It is the county seat of Hood County and the principal city of the Micropolitan Statistical Area....
, southwest of Fort Worth. Survivors included his wife of fifty-two years, Gladys Bookout O'Hearn (June 20, 1910 — September 6, 2001); one son, Patrick T. O'Hearn (born 1930) of Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs, California
Palm Springs is a desert city in Riverside County, California, within the Coachella Valley. It is located approximately 37 miles east of San Bernardino, 111 miles east of Los Angeles and 136 miles northeast of San Diego...
; one daughter, Jerry O'Hearn Meier and husband Kenneth Fredrick Meier (both born 1932) of Granbury; nine grandchildren, ten great-grandchildren, and one great-great-grandchild. Gladys O'Hearn, a Shreveport native and a graduate of Northwestern State University
Northwestern State University
Northwestern State University, known as NSU, is a four-year public university primarily situated in Natchitoches, Louisiana, with a nursing campus in Shreveport and general campuses in Leesville/Fort Polk and Alexandria. It is a part of the University of Louisiana System.NSU was founded in 1884 as...
(then College) in Natchitoches
Natchitoches, Louisiana
Natchitoches is a city in and the parish seat of Natchitoches Parish, Louisiana, United States. Established in 1714 by Louis Juchereau de St. Denis as part of French Louisiana, the community was named after the Natchitoches Indian tribe. The City of Natchitoches was first incorporated on February...
, was the executive secretary for many years of the Arkansas-Louisiana Citgo
Citgo
CITGO Petroleum Corporation is a United States-incorporated, Venezuela-owned refiner, transporter and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products. The company is owned by PDV America, Inc., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Petróleos de...
Company. Mrs. O'Hearn was also preceded in death by Paul A. Kennon, her son from a previous marriage.
Taylor and Gladys O'Hearn are interred at Forest Park Cemetery on St. Vincent Avenue in Shreveport. O'Hearn's parents are also buried in Forest Park but not in the same section of the cemetery.